August 29, 2008

Ponder This: Should Ana just have stayed home?

Introducing a new segment here called "Ponder This", wherein I pose questions to you guys that I don't really have a firm stance on to get your wise thoughts and opinions. Pretty simple game, no? Here we go.

Jim Courier, in his analysis of Ana's loss yesterday, said that he gave a lot of credit to her for even showing up and playing at the US Open this year given her injury. I hadn't really thought about this angle before. Clearly, given her pressers this week, Ana was under no illusion that she was going to win this tournament. She was just happy to get out there and be playing pain free. But as the #1 player in the world and the #1 seed, given the lack of practice and match play, she had to have known that she was throwing herself to the wolves. Because as the #1 player in the world and the #1 seed, anything less than winning the whole tournament would have been an upset. She was setting herself up for mocking/ridicule/doubters/etc.

Now obviously, sitting out of the biggest and last Slam of the year because of sore thumb would have been ridiculous. I think she would have opened herself to even more derision had she done it. But she and her team could have "lied" and told everyone the hand was a wreck, that she had to immobilize it in a cast for a couple of weeks, etc. She really could have avoided this whole debacle.

So should she get credit for coming into this tournament as the #1 seed knowing that she wasn't going to win?

Comments

Ponder This: Should Ana just have stayed home?

Introducing a new segment here called "Ponder This", wherein I pose questions to you guys that I don't really have a firm stance on to get your wise thoughts and opinions. Pretty simple game, no? Here we go.

Jim Courier, in his analysis of Ana's loss yesterday, said that he gave a lot of credit to her for even showing up and playing at the US Open this year given her injury. I hadn't really thought about this angle before. Clearly, given her pressers this week, Ana was under no illusion that she was going to win this tournament. She was just happy to get out there and be playing pain free. But as the #1 player in the world and the #1 seed, given the lack of practice and match play, she had to have known that she was throwing herself to the wolves. Because as the #1 player in the world and the #1 seed, anything less than winning the whole tournament would have been an upset. She was setting herself up for mocking/ridicule/doubters/etc.

Now obviously, sitting out of the biggest and last Slam of the year because of sore thumb would have been ridiculous. I think she would have opened herself to even more derision had she done it. But she and her team could have "lied" and told everyone the hand was a wreck, that she had to immobilize it in a cast for a couple of weeks, etc. She really could have avoided this whole debacle.

So should she get credit for coming into this tournament as the #1 seed knowing that she wasn't going to win?